Multinational graphics processing company, Nvidia plans to restart their production of dedicated Graphics Processing Units (GPUs). According to their executive vice president and chief financial officer Colette Kress, the GPUs reproduction is going to be for cryptocurrency miners. The demand for gaming is still higher but they can start to manufacture again once the demand for cryptocurrency mining is sufficient.
In an interview, Kress said the company can start selling the specialized cards called Cellular Multiprocessing (CMPs) if the demand in the cryptocurrency market rises to a ‘meaningful’ level.
With the release of the Nvidia GeForce RTX 30-series, crypto miners are attracted to the raw performance of the graphics card, which will increase its demand.
Kress added that Nvidia’s RTX 30-series are popular not only in the gaming market but also with crypto miners. However, she believes that the mining demand is not yet a big part of their business today.
The gaming community still has the most significant influence in the demand of its current supply, which is why the company focuses on it. Supplies of Nvidia are tight until at least the end of the first quarter of 2021.
However, relaunching CMPs could ease the pressure on the consumer product line. CMPs are GPUs with removed video outputs that enable them to be manufactured and sold at a cheaper rate.
Usually, Bitcoins use specialized processors called Application-specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), but these cost more compared to GPUs. Other cryptocurrencies like ETH can be mined with just GPU.
Back on November 18, 2020, there has been a surge in demand for GPUs. Some thought that this is mainly due to the demands from the gaming community but it seems that Bitcoin prices are the other reason behind the supply shortages.
Chief technology strategist Brad Gastwirth said that although there are no other clear indications that increased interest in crypto mining is generating additional demand for GPUs, the recent rise in crypto could produce another possible demand for graphics chip makers.
He also stated that this is a situation they are monitoring. Another instance includes miners that are waiting for the RTX 30-series sold at a cheaper price but still have a good performance.
Discover more cryptocurrency updates when you visit CryptoShimbun!